The Turnbo Manuscripts

by Silas Claiborne Turnbo
1844-1925

The dividing ridge between the breaks of Lower Turkey Creek on the north
and the McVey hollow and Cedar Creek on the south is known as the Chainlink
Mountains. The summit of these hills in places is narrow with sides steep
and rough. As one passes along the crests of these hills low gaps and high
mound like formations are seen. These Chainlink hills are timbered with
black oak, post oak and blackjack interspersed with glades and bald points.
At one spot the gap in the chain is quite low with scattering post oak trees
and numerous flat rocks which show just above the surface of the ground,
As we stand in this gap and face southward we have a view of the small valley
of Cedar Creek which empties into Big Creek. Beyond this is the distant
hills south of White River. To the right is a high hill covered with timber
which is a part of the Chainlinks. To the left is a small spot of rough
prairie which extends up to the timber that grows on another hill similar
in shape to the one just refered to. To the north a short distance stands
the noted Turkye Bald Knob. Further on is the hills of Turkey Creek and
Little North Fork. There is a hollow that runs into Turkey Creek that was
known to the early settlers as White River Hollow, which took its name from
a trail that was made by the settlers in early times in passing from the
settlements on Little North Fork to White River and from the latter stream
to the former water course. The trail leads up this hollow and over this
gap and down Cedar Creek to Big Creek and down this stream to the river.
In the early days, the settlers used this pathway so frequently that it
was kept beat out but at the present date it is but little used and is almost
obliterated with time and lack of travel. At the present days there is a
wagon way from Dugginsville to Lutie which leads up the slope of the hill
¼ mile west of this gap. Dugginsville is on Cedar Creek one mile
south of here. The gap we refer to is in Ozark County, Missouri. Now let
us go south of White River in Marion County, Arkansas. In a hollow that
leads into Trimble Creek at the Bill Trimble place is a spring of water
that runs out -of the ground at the base of a hill near the Charley Hodge
place. This water is on the road leading from Peel to the mouth of Trimble
Creek, This spring took its name from Allin Trimble who give it the name
of "Mountain Spring" and was a great resort for men in war days.
Now sets in our story. In the month of May, 1863, a number of southern men
assembled at this spring to go on a raid into Ozark County. Their leader
was Bill Cain who lived on Jimmies Creek. I am told that there were
30 men who were armed and equipped sufficiently to put up a good fight with
the enemy of equal numbers. They were all mounted and when they were ready
for the start they marched to the river and forded it and after passing
Big Creek they struck through the rough hills and went to Pond Fork and
across the ridge to North Fork and up this stream to the mouth of Little
Creek. A company of mounted federals troops were temporarily stationed on
Beaver Creek in Douglas County. These men were in charge of Capt. Bill Piland
with Lieut. Bill Evans as second in command. It took only a few hours for
the union soldiers to get word of the approach of the confederates and Piland
hurried off with his men which were 26 in number to find out what the southern
fellows were up to. After the Southerners had rode around a while on Little
Creek they decided to go back to White River and traveled the most of the
night. On reaching the ford of Little North Fork just above the mouth of
Pond Fork they halted to rest before the break of day. After resting a while
they resumed the march and traveled down the creek to the mouth of Turky
Creek and turned and went up this stream to the Mud Spring. By this time
the sun was an hour or more high. The morning was clear with a heavy dew.
After leaving Turky Creek they followed the trail that leads up White River
hollow to the gap in the Chainlinks that we mentioned at the beginning of
this account. By this time the confederates were tired and their horses
were jaded and hungry and they halted in the low gap to rest in the shade
of the trees and let their horses graze. The officer in charge was careless
and negligent and failed to post videts to be on the look out for the enemy.
They were not expecting the enemy to overhaul them and would rest awhile
and travel on at their leisure. But they all paid dearly for their idleness.
The men turned their horses loose to fill themselves on the luxuriant growth
of grass and they scattered in every direction. Part of the men lay down
on the grass. Others rested at the foot of the trees. One man read a newspaper
that had fell into their hands while on Little North Fork and some of the
men were giving eager attention to the reading. They were loose in discipline
or they would have been vigilant and watchful to the highest degree for
the approach of the federals. They made a sad mistake in not doing this.
In the meantime the company of union cavalry hurried to meet the southern
fellows and when they reached Little Creek they found they were gone back
to-ward White River by disappearing down North Fork and they made haste
to pursue them. By some means the union men learned that the southern men
had halted on the Creek to camp late in the night and they layed a trap
for the unsuspecting Southerners, but they never caught them. When the federals
had reached the mouth of Turkey Creek it was sunrise and the trail of the
confederates were easily followed up Turkey Creek and up White River hollow
on account of the heavy dew and the tracks the horses made. The officers
in command of the squad of federals were cautious and kept two men in advance
of them and when these two men approached in sight of the gap they heard
the southern men laughing and talking. Carefully and cautiously they went
a little closer where they got a glancing view of their position and condition
without being observed. It was a grand moment to make a dash and charge
and the two videts turned and went back to their command and made their
report. Capt. Piland ordered his men to dismount and after making a detail
of two or three men to look after the horses he advanced with the remainder
of his men in a slow and cautious manner up the hollow a short distance,
then leaving the trail and turned to the left and went on until they reached
the glade in view of the confederates and halted and fired on them. We have
said that the southern men were very negligent in their duty and we will
say now that the federals were certainly wild with excitement. I am told
that they fired 100 shots more or less from their guns and pistols without
killing or wounding a man while the confederates were in the gap. With the
exception of a hole shot in the top of Harve Yocums hat not a man
was touched. When the volley was fired by the soldiers in blue it was a
surprise to those in grey. The noise of the outburst of small arms and the
whistling of the bullets that struck the rocks and ground near the men created
a panic and a route. They left their guns and made a wild rush for safety.
A few of the confederates made for their horses and succeeded in mounting
them and went off on a wild race over the rough stony ground. I am told
that John Copelin darted for his horse and got astride of him while the
animal was trotting and galloped away under a heavy fire but not a ball
touched him. This shows that the federals were as poor marksmen as the southern
force were slack in being slipped up on. As the southern men scattered in
their exciting rush to escape, the federals did likewise in pursueing them.
Asa Yocum ran down the hill into the head of Cedar Creek pursued by the
second officer in command of the federals. When Mr. Yocum had run 250 yards
his strength was exhausted and he stopped under a post oak tree to surrender
and handed the officer his pistol breech foremost which the man took and
raised it and pointed the muzzle of the pistol at Yocums head and
shot him just over the left eye. I am told that Mr. Yocum struggled in the
agony of death a half an hour before his final moments come. The federals
captured 19 head of horses with their equipments and a number of guns and
pistols. They also captured 5 prisoners the names of which were Jim Friend,
son of Peter Friend, John Carroll, son of Tom Carroll, Mike Yocum, son of
Mike Yocum and brother of Asa Yocum, Bob Mitchell and Jerry Davisthe
last named died in a northern prison.

Asa Yocum had a number of friends among the federals and when they found
that he was killed they regretted it. I was told by a southern man that
was with them at the time that while they were coming down North Fork below
the mouth of Little Creek they stopped at the residence of Sam and Joe Piland.
Joe was sick and was at home on furlough and in bed. Some of the southern
men threatened to kill them both but Asa Yocum interfered and begged for
their lives and they were not hurt. As usual in war when a man is killed
by the enemy his body is left where it falls so it was in Mr. Yocums
case. The body was left lying in the grass in the shade of the post oak
tree *here he gave up his life. But some of the man were kind enough to
tie a handkerchief to a limb of the post oak tree that hung over the body
to direct the family and other friends where the body lay. The southern
men did not know Mr. Yocum was killed and when some of the confederates
who were running at the top of their speed heard the report of the pistol
they knew it was Yocums but they supposed he had shot a, federal.
But when the most of the retreating men had reached the river and their
old friend had not made his appearance they were convinced that he was killed.
On the following day after the Southerners were attacked, Harve Yocum, brother
of Asa Yocum, Bob Davis, John Copelin and Tomps Copelin returned to the
scene of the attack and made a search for him and Harve Yocum discovered
the dead body of his brother lying under the bows of the post oak tree as
mentioned. Yocum and Tomps Copelin remained with the body and Bob Davis
and John Copelin went back to the Asa Yocum farm to notify Asas wife
and children where the body was discovered and Mrs. Yocum dispatched a messenger
with a blanket to put over the remains to shield them from the flys as much
as possible. Mrs. Eliza Yocum, the bereaved woman, in company with Mrs.
Nancy Yocum, widow of Bill Yocum, "Tine" Copelin, wife of John
Copelin, and Winnie Copelin, wife of Tomps Copelin, and Jim Copelin, son
of Tomps Copelin, and Lindie Friend, daughter of Peter Friend., and Paton
Bevins started with a cart drawn by a yoke of cattle which were guided by
Jim Copelin to bring the body of her dead husband home. It was a trying
time. This awful war brought death and destruction in every direction where
its influence reached and the poor women and children underwent sore trials,
tearful eyes and despairing hearts, but it was war and they were forced
to abide by its results. Mr. Yocum was shot near 9 oclock in the morning
and his body was found near 24 hours after his death and by the time they
arrived on the scene of death with the oxcart it was in an advanced state
of decomposition and very difficult to handle. They taken the body down
Cedar Creek to its mouth then down Big Creek to the river where they crossed
it at the Poll Clark ford and arrived at home with the body at sunset. They
were unable to take off the bloody clothes and put on better ones or take
his boots even but were compelled to bury the remains as they were brought
home. A grave had been dug and a rough coffin had been prepared. The scene
of the burial in the dusk of the evening as the dead mans wife and
children and other friends as they collected around the coffin to pay their
last respects to the dead here on earth was weired, tearful and piteous.
The body received interment in the cemetery near the dead mans residence.
One beautiful day in September as I stood in the low gap where the encounter
took place between the two war parties I thought of the dark shadow that
enveloped the hills and valleys of Ozark County at that time and I thanked
God that the days of blood and death of Civil War is gone and God grant
that it may be gone forever and that ties of friend-ship and love between
the people of both sections of our great United States may grow closer together
as time passes on.